Episodes

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Ep. 59 | Deep Dish: RAM (1971) 50th Anniversary Part 2

Our RAM 50th Anniversary Deep Dish Part 2 is finally here! Whether remastered, half speed mastered, mono mastered, or mastered-mastered, RAM is top-flight Macca and and a near-perfect listen. Tony and T.J. pick-up with Paul’s first U.S. #1 single (no, not “Back in Brazil”) and take us through the Archive Collection bonus tracks. They also find time to address:

  • Tony’s love of the lovely, long haired lady, Linda McCartney

  • Why nothing inspires confidence quite like 1980’s deodorant commercials

  • And which is better: Damn Yankees, the baseball musical, or Damn Yankees, the Nugent-fronted “supergroup”?

If you love this record (and who doesn’t?), you’ll love this episode. We believe that we can’t be wrong!

EPISODE LINKS

  • Spend some more time with the music in this week's episode—check out our Pandora playlist

  • Which solo Macca track do you think should've replaced 3 Legs on the album? Come argue with us on Facebook!

  • Help the show and help other fellow RAMheads (RAMrods? RAMsters? Lindalytes?) find our fine podcast! Please rate and review wherever you listen.

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Ep. 58 | Black Music and The Beatles

Hey it's Juneteenth! In honor of the holiday, let's take a minute to reflect on the Black artists who inspired, wrote, or originally recorded SO MUCH of the Beatles' music we know and love. T.J and Tony pick some of their favorite songs that the Beatles covered, including some of the lesser-known originals.

There's a ton of great music throughout the show. We loved getting to dig into some groundbreaking R&B artists we already knew a little bit about—and some we're just getting to know for the first time—and we hope you do too.

"I was given back my body in the 1950s by Black music. I appreciate it, and I’ll never stop acknowledging it – Black music is my life." John Lennon, JET Magazine, October 1972

EPISODE LINKS:

  • If you haven't been checking out our Pandora playlists, this week's is one you're definitely going to want to tune into.

  • Who are some of your favorite Black artists covered by the Beatles? What'd we leave out? Share your favorites on our Facebook page.

  • As always, if you like the show, it helps A TON if you can leave a rating and review on Apple podcasts or wherever you listen.

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Ep. 57 | Deep Dish: RAM (1971) 50th Anniversary Part 1

1970-71 was a prolific period for Beatles solo releases, and so last month we were blessed with yet another 50th anniversary edition of an iconic album: Paul and Linda McCartney's RAM. Tony and T.J. use the occasion to deep dish their favorite solo Paul work. And while they're at it:

  • T.J. and Tony reminisce about their old radio days and the technological marvel of audio cartridges

  • Tony does his best Magic Alex impression, explaining the technological marvel of half-speed mastering.

  • And the guys debate whether "Too Many People" can knock off "Motor of Love" and "Ou Est Le Soleil" for the top spot on the all-time greatest solo Paul charts

As usual, there's a lot of great music to talk about, so this one's going to be a two-parter. And also as usual, there might be a little bit of salty language. Though T.J. insists he's just saying "piece of cake."

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Ep. 56 | Plastic Ono Band Ultimate Collection Part 2

SO. MUCH. LENNON. It took us a couple episodes to tear through this groundbreaking collection of remixes, outtakes, and demos,.Tony and T.J. share their favorite tracks and moments from the Plastic Ono Band 51st Itanniversary Ultimate Collection discs 3 through 6—and there are many among the 4 1/2 hours and 75 tracks on the 4 discs. Along the way:

  • T.J. checks off the holy Untitled Beatles Podcast trinity with classic sitcom references, classic musical references, and classic Pete Best shade.

  • Tony drops a couple dimes in the old non-Beatles jukebox, conjuring Kris Kross, Abba, Franki Valli and the Four Seasons, Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band, the Dave Clark Five, and maybe a couple other faves.

  • And things generally get every bit as goofy and giggly as John doing his Elvis impression.

It's a lot. But it's all right. We think we're gonna make it.

EPISODE LINKS:

  • Want to spend more time with the tunes we talk about? Dig into our Pandora Playlist.

  • Did you make it through all six discs? Did you find a way to play the blu-rays? Any highlights we missed? Come hang out with us on Facebook.

  • If you have a free minute, you could be a Klaus Voorman-level hero for the show. Leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen.

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Ep. 55 | Plastic Ono Band Ultimate Collection Part 1

This week, the guys finally get to dig into the COVID-delayed 51st anniversary edition of what is arguably the greatest post-Beatles Fab Four solo album: John Lennon's Plastic Ono Band (1970).

The Ultimate Collection contains far more than can be covered in a single podcast, so in Part 1, T.J. and Tony tackle the first two discs of the sprawling boxed set, including the Ultimate Mix collection of the original album tracks, as well as the Ultimate Mix outtakes.

The long-awaited compilation may be exhaustive, but does it include any of the long rumoured (and some might say fictional) rarities like:

  • An alternate take of Remember with Paul on bass

  • The lost O’Jays contribution to Fiddler on the Roof

  • Or the Jeff Lynne + Threetles “My Mummy’s Dead”

Tune in to find out!

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Ep. 54 | Deep Dish: U.S. Rubber Soul (1965) Part 2

The British Rubber Soul is for the birds! OK, that might be a little aggressive. The album's a masterpiece, but T.J. and Tony make a pretty compelling argument that nobody really misses "What Goes On," and that Dave Dexter's U.S. version for Capitol Records is just a superior collection.

It's so fine.

It's sunshine.

It's PART TWO of our U.S. Rubber Soul deep dish. And along the way, we ponder:

  • Where does journalist Maureen Cleave fit into the lineup: Is she the fifth Beatle... or THE THIRD?

  • And where does Ed McMahon land? (Spoiler: the ninth Beatle.)

  • Which iconic songs would the guys etch into their solo Eagles Mt. Rushmores?

"Run For Your Life" may not age well, but we like to think our dumb Peter Cetera jokes will. YOU BE THE JUDGE.

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Ep. 53 | Deep Dish: U.S. Rubber Soul (1965) Part 1

Hey hey! It's our birthday, and we're gonna have a good time. And amazingly, T.J. managed to do an entire year's worth of podcasts before finally cutting loose on his all-time favorite version of his all-time favorite album: the Capitol Records U.S. edition of Rubber Soul. Dave Dexter helps the Fab Four find their inner folksters, and, not to spoil the podcast or anything: TONY AND T.J. ENTHUSIASTICALLY APPROVE.

In Part 1 of their deep dish, the guys remember how they first discovered Rubber Soul, compare and contrast the U.S. and British releases, and dig into the first few tracks. But there's so much good stuff to talk about, we'll have to finish out the album in Part 2 next week.

As always, we got a little distracted along the way, making sure to cover crucial tangents like:

  • What are our least favorite words for "excrement"?

  • Which Buffalo reigns supreme: Buffalo Springfield, Buffalo Stance, or Dabney Coleman's early 80s sitcom Buffalo Bill?

  • Where does Norwegian Wood sit among the all-time great pyromaniac songs?

Really, we can't believe we've been at this for a whole year (or that we still haven't come up with a title for the podcast). We couldn't do it without this wonderful community of Fab Four fanatics. Thanks for coming along on this long and meandering road, and here's to another trip around the sun!

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Ep. 52 | Live in Melbourne (1964)

This week T.J. and Tony follow the Fab Four "under the equator" (as they say) for their ripping June 1964 concert in Melbourne, Australia. It's the rare show that captures the Beatles in peak performance shape, and in high quality audio and video. The guys go through track-by-track, and also find time to cover:

  • Their favorite early 2000s post-grunge band

  • Their least favorite 80s NBC TV theme

  • The breakfast menu at the Taco Bell in Plymouth, Wisconsin

  • and more!

So pack your bags; we’re heading for Australia! Insert Men At Work joke here.

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Ep. 51 | Magical Mystery Tour (1967) Part 2

Dust off your mellotrons! It's the long-awaited, thrilling conclusion of last week's deep dish into MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR. Picking up where they left off—on Side 2 of the Capitol US LP—Tony and T.J. tease apart some of the Fab Four's most iconic songs, including...

  • Strawberry Fields

  • Baby You're a Rich Man (the Fat Boys version)

  • All You Need is Love (the Beat Bugs version)

  • Shirley's Wild Accordion

...and so much more! So pack your bags, buckle up, and let us take you down through some of the grooviest tunes in the Beatles canon.


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Ep. 50 | Magical Mystery Tour (1967) Part 1

ROLL UP! T.J. and Tony have been waiting over 50 episodes to take you away on a journey into the psychedelic 1967 Beatles classic "Magical Mystery Tour." The album, not the movie. Well, half of the U.K. EP and half of the U.S. LP. Because that's how we roll up.

Along the way, you just might learn:

  • Which does Tony love more: the bass harmonica, or Queen Latifah?

  • Which does T.J. love more: Blue Jay Way or the 1993 World Series champion Toronto Blue Jays?

  • Did the Eggman actually go on to front the 2020 Best New Artist Grammy-winning Black Pumas?

  • What the hell is a crabalocker fishwife?

So much fun, we couldn't cover it all in one episode. It's gonna be a two-parter, so stay tuned for even more magic and more mystery next week.

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